Time to ditch plastic? Microplastics found in India’s branded water bottles

The study found widespread contamination with tiny plastic particles that are likely seeping in during the packaging process in 93 percent of the bottled water samples, including India's branded water bottles.

Miami: There's no denying the fact that bottled water is marketed as the very essence of purity. It's the fastest-growing beverage market in the world, valued at US$147 billion per year. But a major research conducted across nine countries shows that a single bottle can hold dozens or possibly even thousands of microscopic plastic particles. According to the new study done by Orb Media, a non-profit journalism organisation based in Washington, DC, more than 90 percent of the world's most popular bottled water brands contain tiny plastic particles - and it could be twice as high as those found in tap water.

The study published on Wednesday found widespread contamination with tiny plastic particles that are likely seeping in during the packaging process in 93 percent of the bottled water samples, which included major name brands such as Aqua, Aquafina, Dasani, Evian, Nestle Pure Life and San Pellegrino. Other brands that were found to contain plastic contaminated included Bisleri, Epura, Gerolsteiner, Minalba and Wahaha. Read: Maharashtra proposes three-year jail term for milk adulteration

The study, led by microplastic researcher Sherri Mason of the State University of New York at Fredonia, tested 250 bottles of water in Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Thailand, and the United States. The plastic debris included polypropylene, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is used to make bottle caps, according to a summary released by Orb Media.

"In this study, 65 percent of the particles we found were actually fragments and not fibers," Mason told AFP. "I think it is coming through the process of bottling the water. I think that most of the plastic that we are seeing is coming from the bottle itself, it is coming from the cap, it is coming from the industrial process of bottling the water."

Particle concentration ranged from "zero to more than 10,000 likely plastic particles in a single bottle," said the report. On average, plastic particles in the 100 micron (0.10 millimetre) size range - considered "microplastics" - were found at an average rate of 10.4 plastic particles per litre.

Even smaller particles were more common - averaging about 325 per litre.

Experts said that the extent of the risk to human health posed by such contamination remains unclear. "There are connections to increases in certain kinds of cancer to lower sperm count to increases in conditions like ADHD and autism," said Mason. "We know that they are connected to these synthetic chemicals in the environment and we know that plastics are providing kind of a means to get those chemicals into our bodies."

Should you kick the plastic water bottle habit?

Previous research by Orb Media has found plastic particles in tap water, too, but on a smaller scale.

The three-month study used a technique developed by the University of East Anglia's School of Chemistry to "see" microplastic particles by staining them using fluorescent Nile Red dye, which makes plastic fluorescent when irradiated with blue light.

"We have been involved with independently reviewing the findings and methodology to ensure the study is robust and credible," said lead researcher Andrew Mayes, from UEA's School of Chemistry. "The results stack up."

Jacqueline Savitz, chief policy officer for North America at Oceana, a marine advocacy group that was not involved in the research, said the study provides more evidence that society must abandon the ubiquitous use of plastic water bottles.

"We know plastics are building-up in marine animals, and this means we too are being exposed, some of us, every day," she said, adding it's more urgent now than ever before to make plastic water bottles a thing of the past."

"Tap water, by and large, is much safer than bottled water," added Mason.

Time to ditch plastic? Microplastics found in India’s branded water bottlesDescription:The study found widespread contamination with tiny plastic particles that are likely seeping in during the packaging process in 93 percent of the bottled water samples, including India's branded water bottles.Times Now